Domitian: References & Edit History

The ancient sources for Domitian include the life found in Book 8 of Suetonius, De vita Caesarum (ed., with commentary, by Brian W. Jones in 1996), which is factual and relatively unbiased compared with the very negative reports in Tacitus, De vita Julii Agricolae (98; Life of Agricola), and Pliny the Younger, Panagyricus. Another useful source is Book 67 of Dio Cassius, Romaika, a history of Rome. Among the poets, Statius, Silvae, praises Domitian, while Juvenal, Satires, portrays him in an unfriendly light. Martial, Epigrams, is sycophantic during Domitian’s life and savage after his death. The evidence based on coins and inscriptions is presented in M. McCrum and A.G. Woodhead (compilers), Select Documents of the Principates of the Flavian Emperors (1961).

Modern discussions of Domitian’s life and reign include Brian W. Jones, Domitian and the Senatorial Order (1979), and The Emperor Domitian (1992); and Pat Southern, Domitian: Tragic Tyrant (1997).